THE Bushfire Royal Commission report contains a roadmap to making Victoria safe, writes DAVID PACKHAM

The Royal Commission has been a useful step along the path to making Victoria once again safe for people, our water supplies and the environment.

The great usefulness has been in the collection of 1260 submissions and days of selected witness evidence which will be a goldmine for access to all shades of opinion, fact and fiction of the third most fatal bushfire disaster in the world's history.

The most important lesson in this mountain of information is that we can and will do worse if we do not attend to the threat which comes from our unique meteorologic and neglected fuel-filled and unhealthy forests.

Victoria's bushfire threat is the worst in the world.

The Royal Commission has provided us all, including the Government with the raw product to distil a lasting and bearable solution.

The people of Victoria have spent at least $100 million on this process.

We all hope that we have got value for the investment, but it is not totally clear yet.

The Royal Commission almost failed in its recommendation on fuel reduction - our only true solution.

In 1961, Western Australia was in the same situation as we are now in Victoria - a fire disaster and a subsequent Royal Commission.

The (WA) Roger Royal Commission then and there resulted in a determination to prevent a repetition by insisting on a vigorous and determined fuel management policy and practice.

As a consequence, we made the south west of Western Australia safe and healthy and it has remained so for the past 45 years.

We can do the same here but this Commission's recommendation on fuel reduction is soft and this Government has already rejected it in its submission.

It is not looking too promising. Let's not wait until we again lose too many people and destroy our bush.